Important Links

Poultry Bedding

Traditionally woodshavings have been used as poultry bedding material in chicken houses. Woodshavings were readily available and were relatively inexpensive. Also there was little else available. However, woodshavings can be dusty and are not very absorbent. Dust affects chickens respiratory system and in due course leads to various diseases.

Currently there are various different alternative beddings available. One of them is SoftaCARD.

SoftaCARD is finely shredded UNUSED VIRGIN CLEAN eggboxes bedding and as a bedding material in chicken houses is becoming more and more popular amongst poultry keepers. There are a number of advantages of using SoftaCARD over woodshavings as a substrate.

SoftaCARD is dust free and very absorbent. Chickens are prone to respiratory problems from dust and from ammonia given off from droppings. It is important to have good ventilation in the coop to remove ammonia but also to use absorbent dust free bedding to absorb moisture from the droppings. Woodshavings are commonly available in pet shops and livery shops but even though most are 'dust extracted' these days, they are still not perfect and can still contain a fair amount of dust.

Woodshavings tend to get compacted. SoftaCARD bedding stays loose and provides a good substrate that encourages scratching, a chickens most natural behaviour.

After use SoftaCARD will do very well on the compost heap. SoftaCARD composts readily and in matter of months will turn into lovely compost. Woodshavings takes several years to fully compost.

For the nestboxes you need something nice and soft, something which keeps the birds dry and warm. Sofnest Standard fits the bill perfectly. It is nice and cosy and comfortable for the birds to lay their eggs.

For chickens, we would recommend the SoftaCARD Maxibale substrate plus Sofnest Nesting Material package for £25.50.

" the product is dust free, absorbs odour and wet , and gets softer the more the animals walk on it.Waste litter is also doing nicely on the compost heap.The nesting material is used by the hens in the boxes and provides a safe soft material for them to lay their eggs on.Would reccomend to animal keepers on a large and small scale." By Carolyn Carter 2011